Macos reviews from Reddit
Summary
We analyzed 304 Reddit reviews across 15 subreddits and 55 posts to rank the best Macos brands recommended by redditors, including communities like r/macapps, r/MacOS, r/hackintosh, r/OpenCoreLegacyPatcher, r/mac. Top-rated brands include Apple (4.2/5), Transmission (4.3/5), qBittorrent (4.1/5).
Stats
Reviews304
Subreddits15
Posts55
Brands85
Products20
304 reviews from
and
By Brand
/By Product
#1
Apple
4.2
(71)
"Get a cheap used Mac mini and any drive or RAID you want. Better than any all-in-one NAD, imo."
"Perfect—very stable and extremely lightweight."
"I would suggest Monterey or higher to run current version of applications, like Chrome, HP printer utility, etc."
"Monterrey is working perfectly fine."
"If you’re specifically looking for stability, then macOS High Sierra is your best bet."
"For my case Sonoma is great."
"I think i will go back to Monterey. I need this Version as a minimum requirement for my DJ software."
"Mojave was absolutely solid."
"It’s free, built in so I don’t need to teach users to fiddle with privacy settings and there’s AUDIO!!"
"I love it because I am able to connect my m1 MacBook Air to my old mbp and use it as my backup disk over my local network."
#2
Transmission
4.3
(19)
"I've used both and one macOS Transmission is the best and mort secure w VPN"
"Switched to transmission and boii never looked away"
"Both are perfect. Perfect. Period."
"I’ll die by transmission on my Mac and Linux machines"
"If I use macOS, Linux or FreeBSD. It‘s always Transmission."
"I’m using Transmission since maybe 2010? Honestly does everything that I need."
"Transmission is the best for macOS for me. Sleek, minimal performs smoothly and does the job."
"Transmission UI is about 100X better."
"Transmision"
"Never knew there was a legit second option for OS. Just thought qb was the gold standard. I’m excited to install this"
#3
qBittorrent
4.1
(15)
"Qbittorrent now and forever. Even though the Mac development is thin."
"QBittorrent by a kilometre"
"QBittorrent, until Transmission macOS supports sequential downloads"
"I recently switched to qb and it's so much easier to configure, and downloads MUCH faster."
"I use qbittorent no problems"
"I've been using QB on Mac for many years now, I still think it's fine for me"
"QB for sure"
"Qbit is great on speed or if you're doing say whole series, but do update to 5.0.5 as the prior version was sluggish closing down and occasionally froze even on apple silicon."
"Qb has faster download speeds, works best for advanced users."
"I’m a qbit user, although for the most part I just have the instance on my TrueNAS and my Mac doesn’t typically run _any_ torrent client."
#4
Raycast
4.6
(13)
"Raycast"
"Raycast for clipboard and spotlight feature!"
"Raycast, Homebrew, keyboard maestro, karabiner element, airbuddy, aldente."
"Raycast"
"Raycast"
"Raycast, my all in one AI tool."
"- Raycast"
"Raycast"
"Raycast"
"I use Raycast and set Opt+V as the hotkey for the Clipboard History extension. It works as expected and has become a habit from using Windows with Win+V."
#5
Safari
4.1
(8)
"Safari is my first preference, then Edge as secondary if something breaks on Safari."
"Safari. It’s the best. It comes pre-installed too."
"Safari is pretty good."
"Safari and Orion for having safari plus Firefox and chrome extension and arc sometimes."
"Safari is great & sometimes things won’t load on Firefox so I use safari."
"Safari and Orion are the only good browsers."
"If you want stick with Safari though, you would need to do Monterey."
"I used google chrome for a while, but my battery was draining way too fast so i switched to safari."
#6
Homebrew
5.0
(6)
"Homebrew is the best “app” that I have found for macOS."
"Homebrew"
"Do yourself a solid and install Homebrew and use that to install (almost) all the apps from the comments that you are gonna be testing."
"I like the terminal, so I'll go with [Homebrew](https://brew.sh) and [Oh-My-Zsh](https://ohmyz.sh)."
"[Homebrew](https://brew.sh)"
"Homebrew is amazing."
#7
Logic Pro
4.2
(6)
"I use Logic Pro and it works fine. The nice thing about Logic Pro, it's now 11, is that it is just $199 and that's it."
"If ur already used to garageband logic pro is pretty much just a beefed up version of it"
"Logic."
"Logic or Ableton."
"Logic Pro"
"Logic Pro"
#8
Alfred
5.0
(5)
"Alfred and Keyboard Maestro."
"Alfred and Karabiner are my 2 must haves"
"Alfred: it's like Spotlight on steroids."
"Alfred"
"Alfred, is easily the most frequently used and essential utility I use"
#9
Parallels
4.6
(5)
"Parallels. Nothing smooth as this."
"Parallels is probably the most polished looking and performing but also the most expensive."
"Parallels works great and is super easy."
"Personally I would choose Parallels over VMWare Fusion because of the stability, as well as easier to use."
"It's very good but of course good products come with a premium."
#10
Microsoft Edge
4.0
(5)
"I've been using Edge, and it works great."
"MS Edge."
"Give Edge a try. I did and never looked back."
"Edge - use less memory with multiple tabs than other browsers."
"I like Edge."
#11
Vivaldi
4.0
(5)
"Love Vivaldi."
"I use Vivaldi. I like that it's crated by former Opera team."
"I've been trying out Vivaldi. It has some glitches, but I'm enjoying its features so far."
"Vivaldi - for best work productivity without VR."
"I am now exploring Vivaldi and Arc."
#12
Spek
5.0
(4)
"[Spek](https://www.spek.cc/)"
"Third for Spec"
"I also use spek, 10/10"
"I’m using “spek” for me much better than FTF"
#13
Arc
4.0
(5)
"I've drank the Kool-Aid."
"Arc Browser for work because it has the best tab managements of all browsers."
"Just good chrome based - Arc browser."
"I still use Arc for two main reasons, tab organisation and being based on Chrome helps a lot for web dev stuff."
"I love so many of the features from Arc but it's dragging my MacBook through the mud sometimes."
#14
Rectangle
4.8
(4)
"[Rectangle]: resize windows."
"Rectangle"
"Rectangle."
"I use Rectangle and Alfred to handle this."
#15
HandBrake
4.5
(4)
"+1 for Handbreak for video. Been using it for decades."
"You should try the free Handbrake app."
"Handbrake for most videos."
"I would recommend handbrake. I believe handbrake uses the FFmpeg library."
#16
SigmaOS
4.3
(4)
"I found out about simaOS here on the forum a few days ago. And he's amazing, the best replacement for my beloved Arc."
"SigmaOS, the UI is so clean, it has built in AI, the one keybind short cuts, and management, etc. Its great. and its free!"
"SigmaOS has almost everything I want."
"Interesting safari based - SigmaOS."
#17
Mozilla Firefox
4.0
(4)
"Firefox because it's open source and Mozilla is awesome."
"Firefox mainly because it’s fast & has plenty of extensions to compartmentalize your focus."
"Safari is good but i use Firefox cus it have Facebook container."
"Firefox for daily use. Also use Edge from time to time if I need a Chromium browser."
#18
Brave
4.0
(4)
"Brave for work, Orion for personal!"
"If you use Firefox because of that, then you maybe haven‘t heard of Brave."
"Poll closed, but Brave for me."
"Brave."
#19
Zen Browser
3.8
(4)
"Been loving Zen! Visually nice, good customization and community."
"I like zen or arc, because are very different than others."
"Firefox or Zen (A firefox fork)."
"Zen browser - Firefox based, looks like arc with fully extensible environment."
#20
PDFgear
5.0
(3)
"For converting PDF files to/from other formats, I use PDFgear on my Mac."
#21
BetterTouchTool
5.0
(3)
"Bettertouchtool"
"BetterTouchTool."
"Here are some of my top picks. - Better Touch Tool."
#22
Dropover
4.7
(3)
"I just bought Dropover, its worth the $5."
"Just a few I am instantly installing on all my new Macs: Dropover"
"Dropover"
#23
Ableton Live
4.7
(3)
"Ableton live is my recommendation. Ableton/vital are the core of my workflow can’t recommend it enough."
"Ableton Live is my DAW of choice"
"Ableton Live, Studio One. Both have Mac versions, both handle Vital well."
#24
ImageOptim
4.7
(3)
"Imageoptim"
"Mine is ImageOptim. Very handy."
"ImageOptim"
#25
Maccy
4.3
(3)
"Maccy - lightweight clipboard manager for macos! Itade my transition so easy to macs!"
"I use both Maccy and Raycast, initially uninstalled Maccy cuz of Raycast, but found Maccy is more convenient, and fast forward as it located in menu bar."
"Maccy is both free and open-soruce."
#26
AppCleaner
4.3
(3)
"AppCleaner"
"AppCleaner after you inevitably end up uninstalling all of these (from experience)."
"I've tried both, but found [AppCleaner](https://freemacsoft.net/appcleaner/) a little better. YMMV..."
#27
Firefox
4.3
(3)
"Been using it for over a decade. Love the extensions."
"Firefox, only other option is Safari. However, Firefox extensions have much better ad blocking."
"FF is my fav but I definitely wouldn’t recommend it to everyone."
#28
Monterey
4.0
(3)
"Monterey is, I believe, stable, and the last version with old Settings app."
"I’m on Monterey and it’s always been pretty good. Still has Broadcom support and you get Universal Control/Continuity stuff."
"Monterey ir Ventura would be my recommendation."
#29
Bitwig
4.0
(3)
"Bitwig. Try the demo"
"Pretty much any DAW vital is like one of the most used vstis out there. I'm using bitwig and love it"
"Bitwig is the best DAW, says the Bitwig fanboi here"
#30
Google Chrome
4.0
(3)
"Chrome has been my favourite irrespective of OS."
"Mainly use Chrome, and every so often I'll use Safari for a few days."
"Chrome and Safari. Depends on the task."
#31
Cron
4.0
(3)
"I am checking out Cron and Fantastical for Calendar function today."
"I am checking out Cron and Fantastical for Calendar function today."
"I use Cron for calendar and Mimestream for email."
#32
Ventura
3.7
(3)
"If you use virtualbox for mess around and developing stuff with intel wifi card then just stick at ventura."
"I’m hanging out at Ventura so far, since it doesn’t require OCLP for my Broadcom wifi card, yet is still receiving security updates."
"If you play with vm stuff and you will use intel just use ventura."
#33
PDF Expert
5.0
(2)
"I recently bought the PDF Expert on Stack social and it's great."
"PDF Expert. It is unfortunately not cheap, but it is the best I've found."
#34
macOS
5.0
(2)
"That's macOS 14 Sonoma."
"Sonoma"
#35
Cleanshot X
5.0
(2)
"Cleanshot X and Little Snitch are the first two apps I install on any Mac."
"[Cleanshot X](https://cleanshot.com)"
#36
Mac OS X
5.0
(2)
"My mid-2012 15" MBP will forever be on Mojave (which I love) for 32 bit VST support."
"Mojave is great! Love it."
#37
EasyDict
5.0
(2)
"Check out EasyDict (free). Like TextSniper, but with translation too. Great app!"
"Just a few I am instantly installing on all my new Macs: EasyDict"
#38
Magnet
5.0
(2)
"Magnet"
"I use Magnet, has worked flawlessly for me"
#39
Amphetamine
5.0
(2)
"Amphetamine"
"Here are some of my top picks. The links take you to a review, with download info, pricing and privacy info. - Amphetamine - Ultimate Sleep Prevention for Your Mac."
#40
Arc Browser
4.5
(2)
"+1 for Arc Browser"
"I really enjoy using Arc Browser because of its tab management."
#41
UTM
4.5
(2)
"UTM works fine as well."
"UTM is free. If you don’t need tons of features, free is always good."
#42
Clop
4.5
(2)
"Just a few I am instantly installing on all my new Macs: Clop"
"Just use whatever suites you best for your video recordings and then optimize the video file size with Clop."
#43
PearCleaner
4.5
(2)
"Just a few I am instantly installing on all my new Macs: PearCleaner"
"[Pearcleaner](https://github.com/alienator88/Pearcleaner)"
#44
Sonoma
4.5
(2)
"If you want to develop for ios and Mac os you have to go with Sonoma."
"Go with Sonoma. its very stable and most apps are supported."
#45
MonitorControl
4.5
(2)
"I use Lunar to control the brightness of my Dell monitor and it works great."
"MonitorControl will allow you to control brightness for any external monitor with DDC support."
#46
Reaper
4.0
(2)
"Reaper"
"To be honest, I’d persevere with reaper. It’s one of the best DAW’s out there."
#47
FL Studio
4.0
(2)
"FL studio!"
"FL Studio ig"
#48
CleanMyMac
4.0
(2)
"CleanMyMacX is good; there are also other lightweight apps like TrashMe, CleanMyApp etc."
"CleanMyMac su-X"
#49
FDM
4.0
(2)
"I use FDM for both regular and torrent downloads. Never let me down"
"FDM is good too"
#50
Ghostty
4.0
(2)
"Ghostty"
"Ghostty terminal is good"
#51
Orion
4.0
(2)
"Safari. For Chrome & Firefox extensions you can try webkit based browser Orion."
"Imo Orion, Safari, or Zen."
#52
PasteNow
4.0
(2)
"But you missed PasteNow https://pastenow.app
I would add it after PastePal"
"If you are willing to spend $8, I can recommend PasteNow."
#53
Motrix
3.5
(2)
"I really like Motrix."
"Motrix"
#54
Strongbox
5.0
(1)
"My personal experience with Strongbox on MacOS and iPhone coupled together with KeePassXC on Windows has been excellent."
#55
Raycast Pro
5.0
(1)
"Raycast pro (with ai)"
#56
Music Widget
5.0
(1)
"Music widget by M. Guzman, its so good."
#57
Notion
5.0
(1)
"Dente AI and Notion + Notion calendars."
#58
Keyboard Maestro
5.0
(1)
#59
Compress.ohzi.io
5.0
(1)
"Is the best video utility around and has the best UX"
#60
Be Focus
5.0
(1)
"It's simple and easy."
#61
Default Folder
5.0
(1)
#62
Soundsource
5.0
(1)
"Soundsource"
#63
OrbStack
5.0
(1)
"OrbStack"
#64
Flux
5.0
(1)
"Flux and Aldente"
#65
App Cleaner
5.0
(1)
"Rectangle, App Cleaner"
#66
4.0
(1)
"WhatsApp by Facebook"
#67
Office
4.0
(1)
"I use Office 2011 on it which is much faster and also looks better than the new versions."
#68
Chrome
4.0
(1)
"For internet browsing install latest Chrome and all websites should work."
#69
Excel
4.0
(1)
"Catalina will support Excel but the absolute latest version does require Big Sur."
#70
VoiceInk
4.0
(1)
"Check VoiceInk for speech, it's open-source!"
#71
Batch Clipboard
4.0
(1)
"I found all the clipboard utilities to be too overbearing, and wanted just to be able to easily copy a bunch of items _here_ and then paste them all _there_."
#72
RUMlogNG
4.0
(1)
"It's not quite as full featured as N1MM (nothing is, really), but it has many of the most useful features."
#73
Airclap
4.0
(1)
"For transferring files to devices on other platforms, I use Airclap."
#74
Zorin OS
4.0
(1)
"Zorin for its simplicity."
#75
Manjaro
4.0
(1)
"Manjaro!"
#76
Rocket
4.0
(1)
"Rocket, an app to insert emoji using Slack-style."
#77
Just Focus
4.0
(1)
"Just Focus, a simple Pomodoro app."
#78
Triode
4.0
(1)
"They have a pretty cool widget! Is shows artwork of what is playing + controls."
#79
1Password
4.0
(1)
"Used to love it, now I just appreciate it."
#80
BTT
4.0
(1)
#81
ClickUp
4.0
(1)
"ClickUp also has an entity called 'Goals', you can try it."
#82
Mimestream
4.0
(1)
"But minus the calendar."
#83
SiteSucker Pro
3.0
(1)
"Don't think any will do this, but try SiteSucker Pro."
#84
SingleFile
3.0
(1)
"Try browser extensions like [SingleFile](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/singlefile/mpiodijhokgodhhofbcjdecpffjipkle?hl=en) and [Save Page WE]"
#85
Wavebox
3.0
(1)
"Didn't used it myself, though."
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